Loveland schools embark on safety, security audits this week

Berthoud High School resource officer Pablo Vazquez shares a laugh Friday with students Ivy Castillo, 15, left, Cheyenne Ortega, 16, and Ryan Oakes, 15, in the library while walking the school grounds on patrol.
(
Steve Stoner
)

Six weeks ago, 20 children and six adults were killed in Newtown, Conn., during the worst elementary-school shooting in the history of the United States.

Following the initial shock and horror that was felt around the country, officials at the Thompson School District joined with other school communities to ask the questions that had never been more important: How secure are we? What steps are in place to prevent a tragic event at one of our schools? And what more can be done?

In the past seven weeks, Superintendent Stan Scheer has overseen and planned for several changes related to school safety and security.

"I felt like we needed to get to another level as quickly as possible to ensure that we are creating as safe a school environment as we possibly can," Scheer said.

"You no longer can have a plan on the shelf, you have to practice it regularly."

New Position, Same Focus

In a letter posted on the district's website the day after the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, Scheer laid out a plan to, among other things, conduct a thorough review of the safety plans that exist at every school in the district.

To conduct these school safety audits and identify any vulnerable aspects, Scheer moved Loveland High School assistant principal Rick Frei into a newly created position, safety and security manager.

Frei, whose background in law enforcement was seen as beneficial to the position, started earlier this month. He'll begin on-site evaluations at every district building -- starting with the elementary schools -- this week.

"It's a new position, but it's definitely not a new focus," Frei said. "This is a focus that's been going on in the district for many years. There always needs to be checks on the system."

The audits will take Frei through every building in the district, including district offices and other noninstructional facilities, to evaluate the protocols that are currently in place. He'll want to see how drills are practiced, how the buildings handle visitors, how entry points are accessed.

By the end of this school year, Frei will come up with suggestions for how security features may be enhanced at each building.

"We want our buildings to have layered, tiered security features so they have many opportunities to keep our students safe," Frei said.

During the site assessments, several people with different specialties will also be involved at certain stages of the process, Frei said, including those involved with the district's telecommunications, emergency radio and surveillance systems.

"There are always going to be challenges, site-specific," Frei said. "I believe we have a wealth of resources to find solutions to those problems."

Scheer said the position is cost-neutral, funded by vacant district positions in the budget that have not been filled.

Strengthening Ties

Since starting as superintendent in October, Scheer said the lack of a school resource officer at Berthoud High School has been a big concern. That has now been remedied by working with the town of Berthoud and the Berthoud Police Department, who have scheduled Officer Pablo Vazquez to work in the school.

That means every high school and middle school has an officer presence.

It also represents a collaboration and relationship with area law enforcement agencies that Scheer said was on top of his priority list when he was hired. He's had recent conversations about security and safety issues with police chiefs in both Loveland and Berthoud as well as the fire chiefs and Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith.

Out of those conversations, Loveland Police Chief Luke Hecker said his department has enacted a policing project to provide documented extra patrols around the schools and make contact inside the elementary schools between now and May, with a higher level of police presence.

"We are in fact continuing to collaborate with each other to enhance the security in and around schools, especially elementary schools because they don't have SROs," Hecker said.

Scheer hopes that emergency providers from both municipalities and the county will also come together for mock situations that he hopes can be practiced in the district at least twice a year.

More to Come

Local law enforcement agencies also will likely have a role in upcoming community safety forums, which the district plans to host in several locations in February.

Sharon Olson, president of the board of education, said that she's eager to hear what parents and the community have to say at those yet-to-be-scheduled forums, as the decisions made around security and safety will have a direct impact on them.

At a recent board retreat, senior staff and board members discussed school safety and security as a focus area moving forward. While a bond issue might be necessary in the future to implement additional security features at schools, officials believe there's much that can be done immediately at little or no cost. The district is also keeping an eye on potential federal or state grant opportunities related to safe and secure schools.

"Needless to say, the whole issue of school safety has completely changed in short order here," Scheer said.

Scheer has begun seeking proposals for a new communications system, which he said needs to be much more robust than the system currently in place.